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Abstract #3223

Contrast Enhanced Short and Ultrashort Echo Time MRI of the Achilles Tendon in Spondyloarthritis

Richard Hodgson1, Robert Evans2, Carole Burnett2, Andrew Grainger2, Philip O'Connor2, Laura Coates, Philip Helliwell, Paul Emery, Dennis McGonagle, Matthew Robson3

1Leeds Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit, University of Leeds, Leeds, Yorks, United Kingdom; 2Chapel Allerton Hospital, United Kingdom; 3Unversity of Oxford


The Achilles tendon was imaged in symptomatic spondyloarthritis patients and normal volunteers using a range of echo times from 0.07-14ms, with and without intravenous contrast. Images of normal tendons showed anterior reticular signal centred near the level of the superior calcaneum. Images of spondyloarthritis patients acquired with TE=2ms showed the most abnormal signal. Contrast enhancement was greatest on UTE images with TE=0.07ms. Abnormal signal on TE=2ms images was more extensive than contrast enhancement on UTE images. These results suggest 3D SPGR images with TE=2ms are useful for detecting tendon abnormality in spondyloarthritis.